BepiColombo’s eight year journey to Mercury

BepiColombo’s eight year journey to Mercury
Travelling from Earth into the inner Solar System is a technically demanding task due to the Sun's immense gravitational pull. The European-Japanese BepiColombo mission will take eight years to complete its journey to Mercury. Over this time, the spacecraft will perform several flybys – one at Earth, two at Venus, and six at Mercury – to gradually slow down and adjust its trajectory. These manoeuvres will steer BepiColombo into an orbit around the Sun that increasingly aligns with Mercury’s. In November 2026, the spacecraft will finally enter orbit around the innermost planet.
Credit:

ESA